CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - May 2, 2014) - Presence Saint Joseph Hospital announced today its "A" rating in the latest patient safety report from the Leapfrog Group. The hospital has earned this distinction based on the Leapfrog Group's latest Hospital Safety Score, which is designed to rate how well hospitals protect patients from accidents, errors, injuries and infections.

"Every employee and physician here takes pride in the quality of care we deliver. We work hard to prevent infections, falls, medical errors and accidents. This 'A' is an acknowledgement of the environment of excellence that we have created for all patients that come through our doors," said Roberta Luskin-Hawk, M.D., president and CEO of Presence Saint Joseph Hospital.

Only one in three of the 2,500 general hospitals in the U.S. assigned scores by Leapfrog in spring 2014 earned an "A" grade. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Score is free to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when facing a hospital stay. It uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single "A," "B," "C," "D," or "F" score representing a hospital's overall capacity to keep patients safe from preventable harm. The safety procedures Presence Saint Joseph Hospital has in place to protect patients and the outcomes of patient care are reviewed and analyzed to determine the hospital's score.

Hospital Safety Scores are calculated under the guidance of an eight-member Leapfrog Blue Ribbon Expert Panel of patient safety experts, including Johns Hopkins University's Dr. Peter Pronovost, University of Michigan's Dr. John Birkmeyer, and Stanford University's Dr. Arnold Milstein. The Score is compiled under the guidance of the nation's leading experts on patient safety and is administered by The Leapfrog Group, an independent industry watchdog.

About Presence Saint Joseph HospitalPresence Saint Joseph Hospital-Chicago is a nationally ranked, award-winning teaching hospital serving Chicago's lake shore communities. It is home to many world-renowned physicians and advanced medical technologies. Presence Saint Joseph Hospital is part of Presence Health. More information is available at http://presencehealth.org/stjoseph-chicago.

About Presence HealthPresence Health is the largest Catholic health system based in Illinois, created in November, 2011 through the merger of Provena Health and Resurrection Health Care. With more than 150 sites of care, including 12 hospitals, Presence Health has 22,000 employees and 4,000 medical professionals. More information is available at http://presencehealth.org.